Mercedes CLS63 AMG | PH Auction Block

It’s hard to overstate the significance of the Mercedes CLS. No, really. And yes, even allowing for the fact that Mercedes-Benz doesn’t actually make one anymore. Because this first generation, the C219, was the genesis for the premium fastback coupe craze still popular more than 20 years later. The BMW Gran Coupes, the Audi Sportbacks and even the Porsche Panamera all owe some kind of debt to the productionised version of the Vision CLS concept in 2004.

Now it’s been so successful, it’s easy to see the CLS idea is a wonderfully simple one: take relatively humble underpinnings (in this case, the W211 E-Class) and present it much more sexily, with the more powerful engines and a swankier interior. Of course, that was always perceived as the drawback as well, because there were lots of E-Class in a car that cost more money – so why wouldn’t you just have the saloon? But the CLS, a bit like the AMG GT 4-door later on, always felt like more than the sum of its parts, something just that bit more special than a slinkier saloon. 

And when one of those parts was the 6.2-litre, M156 V8, then something truly exceptional resulted. Again, the engine also went in the E-Class, but there remains something that bit extra about a CLS – particularly with rarity in its favour. The CLS63 AMG hails from that memorable time in the late ’00s when Mercedes found room for this V8 in almost everything, from R-Class MPV to CLK convertible. Handily, the CLS is most definitely still one of the 6.2-litre cars you’d really want (not just appreciate for novelty value), and isn’t yet valued at tens of thousands of pounds (wait until you next see one of those R-Classes for sale). 

This one has been with its current keeper for more than a decade, which is often a good sign of how well a car has wormed its way into the affections of its owner. If it wasn’t a joy to drive, if it cost an unreasonable amount to run or wasn’t dependable, then surely it would have gone from the driveway before now – there are alternatives, after all. But it’s stuck around, rumbling through a few thousand miles a year, sauntering through its MOT test and (we’ll assume) been lovely company in the process. How could it not be? 

This particular CLS benefits from a custom stainless steel exhaust, a paint correction and coating a few years back, plus a sprint booster to further improve throttle response. So it should be one of the best-looking and best-sounding examples of a famously handsome, famously melodic AMG flagship. Certainly, it still cuts a dash all these years later, and the walnut trim inside means it’s not just a sea of black. 

As always with these Teutonic muscle cars, you’ll want to consider having a contingency fund to keep a CLS 63 in fine fettle. (It should go without saying by now, but just in case: expensive cars get cheaper to buy, not to run.) The top rate of VED will apply, where some of the supercharged CLSes get away with less. And while the owner of this one has regularly changed the oil, you’ll probably want a big service documented for peace of mind. Then it’ll be time to start planning a trip somewhere far away and sunny, as there’s really nothing like a 6.2-litre AMG to road trip in.